1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to baths, closets, and sinks, and also to fluid handling devices. More specifically, the invention relates to toilet flushing apparatus with means provided to save water. A flush tank attachment is disclosed that fits all varieties of flush valves.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Water saving valves for toilet flush tanks are known in a great variety of embodiments. The following U.S. patents teach flush valves that incorporate means for varying the water delivered by the tank: U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,134,234 to Schonmeyer; 2,001,390 to Lester; 2,106.916 to Morkisch; 2,168,742 to O-Neill et al.; 2,440,389 to Anderson; 2,775,772 to Clarke; 3,561,014 to Johnson; 3,964,109 to Street et al.; and 4,000,526 to Biela et al. The teachings of these prior art patents are uniform in that an entire valve assembly of unique arrangement must be installed in the flush tank. There is no provision for adding a simple device that can convert existing valves to operate in a manner to conserve water. Furthermore, even if some of the above art could be modified to be added to presently existing ordinary flush valves, the applicability of any such art would be limited to a small number of the presently existing types of ordinary flush valves. Therefore, no forseeable apparatus based on the teachings of the prior art could be added to presently existing flush tanks without replacement of the existing flush valve.
My copending application Ser. No. 698,105, filed June 21, 1976, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,091,474 teaches an apparatus that can be added to presently existing flush valves to interrupt the flush. This apparatus attaches to the flush valve and operates by applying its weight to prematurely close the valve at a preselected time. In some flush tanks, however, the complexity of existing linkages, rods, and chains leaves little free area in which to place an attachment to the existing flush valve. Furthermore, there is a possibility that an attachment of the kind described in my copending application or an attachment similar to the devices known in the prior art may interfere with or be interfered with by some portion of the existing flush tank or its contained flush valve, ballcock, or other internal hardware.
From the above review of prior art, it is evident that two major problems presently exist in the prior art. First, presently existing flush valves have a wide variety of configurations that have not been adaptable to any single water saving device without replacing the entire valve. The relatively great expense and inconvenience of replacing an entire valve results in general reluctance to attempt water conservation through reducing the quantity of water used per flush. Alternatively, the availability of a plurality of different devices for modifying correspondingly different existing valves creates confusion and dissuades persons from attempting the job. Second, the variations in the sizes of flush tanks, the variations in available space among mechanisms using the same type of flush valve, and the variety of linkages, rods, chains, and levers that might be found in a flush tank may result in interference between existing mechanisms within the tank and a water saving attachment that may otherwise be well suited for use with the specific type of flush valve found in a tank.
It is therefore the purpose of the present invention to eliminate the above stated problems, while applying the teachings of my copending application.